The Very-Many-Questions-Not-Worth-Their-Own-Thread Thread XLIII

[Birdjaguar]

I can definitely appreciate wanting to keep the tax code simple. I did not consider that introducing inflation would make it too complex. So I suppose that is the answer I was looking for. Although, it seems that Ireland did keep inflation in mind, up to a point, unless I have misunderstood that post. So it seems like a workable approach that's not too complex is possible in some cases, no? Was it easier in Ireland due to the the smaller size of that country, economy, etc.? Or did they eventually get rid of it because it wasn't workable in the long term?

It still seems wrong to me to charge someone tax on something that's lost value, even though the price went up, though. I am not looking to avoid taxes, I am not in the situation where I can cash in on any investments. It just seems wrong to me, at first glance, to charge someone taxes on profits that are actually not profits at all when you examine the situation closer. i.e. the value of the investment going down, while the price goes up (due to inflation). If you buy a stock for $100 and all of a sudden there's massive inflation and the cost of everything doubles overnight, you then selling that stock for $200 yields you no profits at all. Yet you'd be taxed on the $100 that's a "profit". See what I mean?

Here in Canada we actually don't pay taxes on lottery winnings at all. But that's another tangent.

Ireland is not the US and likely did not have the complexity of of the US taxation situation 20 or more years ago.

Market transactions are always in current dollars and reflect the willingness of potential buyers to pay X price. The expected future value of the investment is reflected in the price. Investments do not have any intrinsic absolute value. Inflation usually does not cause "value" to go down. Buyer expectations of future prices are more important. You seem to be assuming that inflation will drive market prices of investments up. that does not seem to be the case. Inflation will usually drive stock prices down (bad economic times). Particular stocks can be impacted sudden increase or decrease in demand. DJT stock? If art is the item in question, then we have seen that having more rich people with lots and lots of money to invest has inflated Art market prices in a big way without any relation to actual inflation.

If we are talking about a specific item bought as an investment, that would need to be identified before assessing its change in price. Without more information about the nature of the investment, it is difficult to draw conclusions about what drives its capital gains.

 

[Gori the Grey]

Do students in sixth-grade (or whatever grade it is) still use those microscopes where you can rotate to one of three different lenses depending on degree of magnification you want? Or have those been outmoded by some newer thing?

 

[The_J]

You even use these still in university, during real research .
They are pretty expensive though in general, so I don't think every school has them.

 

[warpus]

Ireland is not the US and likely did not have the complexity of of the US taxation situation 20 or more years ago.

Market transactions are always in current dollars and reflect the willingness of potential buyers to pay X price. The expected future value of the investment is reflected in the price. Investments do not have any intrinsic absolute value. Inflation usually does not cause "value" to go down. Buyer expectations of future prices are more important. You seem to be assuming that inflation will drive market prices of investments up. that does not seem to be the case. Inflation will usually drive stock prices down (bad economic times). Particular stocks can be impacted sudden increase or decrease in demand. DJT stock? If art is the item in question, then we have seen that having more rich people with lots and lots of money to invest has inflated Art market prices in a big way without any relation to actual inflation.

If we are talking about a specific item bought as an investment, that would need to be identified before assessing its change in price. Without more information about the nature of the investment, it is difficult to draw conclusions about what drives its capital gains.

I asked this question elsewhere and got a mostly satisfactory answer from somebody who suggested that yes, inflation would be too tough to figure into the calculations, but due to this only a part of the gain is taxable.. i.e. that inflation and the $ amount not being a true representation of the value of something is the reason why only a part of the gain is taxable, and not all of it. Another part of the answer was that some investments actually make you money while you hold them, such as an investment property, which you can rent out, so even though the true value of something might have dropped (even if the $ amount it's worth is higher), taxation still makes sense since you would have used the asset to make further profits.. which also get taxed, but I can at least understand the thinking behind that part of the answer.

I'm paraphrasing but that was the essence of that particular answer.

 

[Birdjaguar]

I asked this question elsewhere and got a mostly satisfactory answer from somebody who suggested that yes, inflation would be too tough to figure into the calculations, but due to this only a part of the gain is taxable.. i.e. that inflation and the $ amount not being a true representation of the value of something is the reason why only a part of the gain is taxable, and not all of it. Another part of the answer was that some investments actually make you money while you hold them, such as an investment property, which you can rent out, so even though the true value of something might have dropped (even if the $ amount it's worth is higher), taxation still makes sense since you would have used the asset to make further profits.. which also get taxed, but I can at least understand the thinking behind that part of the answer.

I'm paraphrasing but that was the essence of that particular answer.

What is important is for you to know how any tax is calculated. The rationale behind it is just a bonus. It it is Canadian taxes at work, Canadian Tax software might be a way to work through the calculation. I know in TurboTax I can just open up the capital gain tab and enter the data and see how my taxes would change. If the situation is a complex one, it might well be worth spending a few hundred dollars and visiting a tax specialist to share the details. Such a person might well know different angles you might consider.

 

[EnglishEdward]

What do you think this metal Roman object discovered in Lincolnshire was?

 

[Valka D'Ur]

1. Incense burner
2. Weird attempt at a d12 but with knobs
3. Foreknowledge of the covid virus or something similar

 

[Gori the Grey]

My own guess is that it works in conjunction with ropes. There are smaller examples of the same device, so those with strings.

I think it allows one to form a knot that can be instantly released when needed.

So, certain ropes go through particular holes in a particular sequence and mutual-arrangement. Then maybe a pin goes through one of the holes that, in combination with the tension of the ropes against one another holds the ropes tight until the moment for their release is right.

Now I just need to think of some purpose for which someone would temporarily need a dozen-odd rope-ends held snug for a while and then released in an instant.

So, it's like a portable knot.

 

[Kyriakos]

My own guess is that it works in conjunction with ropes. There are smaller examples of the same device, so those with strings.

I think it allows one to form a knot that can be instantly released when needed.

So, certain ropes go through particular holes in a particular sequence and mutual-arrangement. Then maybe a pin goes through one of the holes that, in combination with the tension of the ropes against one another holds the ropes tight until the moment for their release is right.

Now I just need to think of some purpose for which someone would temporarily need a dozen-odd rope-ends held snug for a while and then released in an instant.

So, it's like a portable knot.

Mass quartering festival? ^^

 

[thetrooper]

What do you think this metal Roman object discovered in Lincolnshire was?

View attachment 690306

Roman dodecahedron. Wiki says unknown application but speculates that it could have been used to check coins. Holes have different diameters.

 

[Gori the Grey]

Were there coins as big as the second-biggest of the holes, though?

66mm Google tells me.

Or better yet: if the hole sizes match Roman coin sizes from the era it dates to, that should be pretty conclusive evidence. And if they don't, then disconfirming that hypothesis. And that should be very knowable.

 

[The_J]

If this thing can be a vase, then this weird roman cube can be one too.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Were there coins as big as the second-biggest of the holes, though?

66mm Google tells me.

Or better yet: if the hole sizes match Roman coin sizes from the era it dates to, that should be pretty conclusive evidence. And if they don't, then disconfirming that hypothesis. And that should be very knowable.

6.6 centimetres, which is over 2 inches. That's a pretty big coin by modern standards.

 

[Bonyduck Campersang]

How do you put in the quotee when using the quote tool? Like here:

How do you put in the 'Vox said'?

 

[Arakhor]

[QUOTE="Bonyduck Campersang"]

[/QUOTE]

 

[Samson]

What do you think this metal Roman object discovered in Lincolnshire was?

View attachment 690306

A work of art.

 

[warpus]

Why are the Bible Belt, Coal Belt, Rust Belt, etc. called "Belts" ?

A belt is thin and long, but when you look at a map of these regions there are more like blobs. What is the origin of the word "belt" here, did it used to mean something else and/or is there an alternate meaning?

 

[Arakhor]

According to Wikipedia, "The 'belt' terminology was first applied to growing regions for various crops, which often follow lines of latitude because those are more likely to have similar climates. The allusion was to a long clothing belt, as seen on a map."

 

[warpus]

Aha! The longitude thing makes a lot of sense, I missed that when applying my google-fu, cheers

 

[warpus]

Can someone help me figure out the difference between these 3 products? I have zero experience with these sorts of products, so maybe I'm missing something obvious. They all seem to be exactly the same, aside from the pricing, and the different design on the can and slightly different amount of product for the last one. The first two are almost identical, aside from the SKU, as far as I can tell.

Thompsons Waterseal 21802 1.2 Gallon Wood Protector (ZX99TRVAL46930) - 1.2 Gallon - Clear - $86.42
Thompsons Waterseal 21802 1.2 Gallon Wood Protector (TRVAL46930) - 1.2 Gallon - Clear - $94.55
Thomspons Waterproofing Wood Protector - Clear, 4.52L - $63.85

Google tells me that 1.2 gallon = 4.54L.. So yeah, the third one has a slightly smaller amount of product... but everything else seems to be the same.

The first and second are almost identical - but the SKU is slightly different (see inside the brackets)

What am I missing? Why wouldn't I just get the cheapest one? Why are the first two basically 50% more expensive than the 3rd one? Why is the second one 10% more expensive than the first?

I checked the Thompsons website, but it wasn't very helpful either.